The Brookhaven leader. [volume] (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1883-1891, 1887-05-12


vantages of bottom lands without dam
ger from overflow. The ridge land is
peculiarly susceptible of fertilization.
The surface OF the county generally is
undulating and the soil is we'll drained.
No part of the county of significant ex-
tent but what is well adapted to cult
vatiOn, and no country is better watcred,
and the waters are pure and sparkling.
The water power of the county is unsur
passed. We venture the assertion that
no territory of similar extent can be
found with more water-mill facilities
and same population with so many wa
ter-mills in actual operation.
Products.
The products of the county are cot
ton. corn, potatoes-sweet and Irish
rice, oats, millet, grasses, sorghum,
sugar cane. tobacco, jute. indigo, and
almost the entire catalogue of garden
vegetables, and all kinds of fruits and
numerous varieties of the grape. To-
bacco, jute and indigo are cultivated,
but to limited extent, and yet sufli-
ciently to demonstrate that their culture
would be profitable. Lincoln county,
through the enterprise of one of its
most intelligent farmers, Mr.. G. Men
eles. has the honor of being the pioneer
county of the State, if not of the
Union, in jute culture. This gem
tleman has also demonstrated that
the tea plant and white mulberry can
be successfully grown here An inspec-
ton of his vineyards and those of Mr..
+. Parsons, at Montgomery Station,
would satisfy the most skeptical that
this is grape growing section. Straw
berries can nowhere be raised more sue
cessfully, while bla kbarrics-a splen-
did fruit-grOw wild in abundance.
Our home raised tobacco is most ex-
cellent. and it is astonishing that its
culture is not more general. While
Lincoln is not reckOned as one of the
principal cotton producing counties in
this section of the state, yet tho reason
Is that her farmers have learned that
they can and do promote their indie
pendence by devoting larger share of
their attention to diversity of crops.
Various grasses grow to perfection
here, Including the celebrated Lcspe-
deza, or Japan clover. which grows
spontaneously, producing from two to
four tons per acre; also white and red
clover. As a stoch-raising and dairy
country it has no superior in the world,
and many of our people are turning
their attention in tbs direction.
Timber.
The territory of Lincoln county orig
inally was heavily timbered in ali of its
parts. Nearly four-iifths of the land is
yet So The lumber industry of the
county is probably its mo important
interest, there being no less than 23
large saw mills and one large lumber
manufacturing company now in opera
ton, employing on an average 20 hands
each, and turning out millions of feet
of the finest longleaf yellow pine lum-
Der annually. The timber of the
county includes not less than fifty va
rietie>, the pine, oak, hickory and gum
predominating, The following varie-
ties of tie finest quality are abundant:
Pine, long and short leaf; white, red,
black, Spanish, and water oaks, early,
late and curly hickory, pecan, maple,
elm, ash, beach, red, black and tupul
gum, persimmon, holly, magnolia, bay,
cherry, sycamore, poplar, willow, iron
wood, etc.
The Inhabi ants.
The people of the county are largely
native, descendants in great part from
an ancestry who emigrated here from
the Carolinas and Georgia. According o
to the census of 1880 the foreign born
population only numbered 40 as
against l3, 407 natives. of whom four
were Indians. The inhabitants are
nearly all an agricultural people, and
they are honest, industrious and hos
p'table. They are temperate and
moral, and large proportion are
church going. Tire Baptist denomina-
ton of Christians predominates. but
the Methodists are numerous and pros
porous, besides q goodiy sprinkling of
other religious Sccts. No better evil
dence of the Sobrieiy and good morals
of the people could be given than that
they have voted the liquor traffic out of
their territory. They are law-abiding
and tolerant, and hearty welcome
will be and is extended to immigrants.
schools.
Fairly good public schools are main
tanned in the county, and these are i'm
proving in grade. At Brookhaven
Whitworth Female College is located,
an institution ranking in size the fourth
in the United States, and in the thor
oughness and efficiency of it's training
surpassed by none.
1t only remains for us to add that
The Health of the County
is most excellent. The character of
the soil. its altitude, its proximity to
the Gulf of Mexico, from which during
the whole summer it enjoys a delight
full breeze, renders the climate the
most salubrious, and is guarantee
against all malarial diseases. In the
winter. owing to our>southern latitude.
the mercury will',iot lind its way to